1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a ground insertable cup holder that has a separate accessory holder.
2. Background of the Prior Art
There are not many better ways to spend a summer day than going to the beach. Spread out a blanket, put on some lotion, soak up the sun, enjoy the warm waters, and people watch, it simply does not get much better. During extended visits at the beach, and even during short visits, beach goes tend to get thirsty. In addressing such thirst, the enjoyment of a cool refreshing beverage, including a refreshing adult beverage, adds to the overall enjoyment of the beach experience. Just crack open a can or bottle (where permitted) and enjoy. The problem is that most people do not drink an entire can or bottle in a single shot, rather they prefer to sip on the beverage, especially if the beverage container is relatively large. The problem becomes what to do with the half consumed beverage. Placing the beverage container down on the ground may seem straightforward, but the probability of knocking the container over on the uneven sand is quite high, especially by a beachgoers half asleep in the warm sun. Some beachgoers partially bury the container in the sand to help prevent knocking the container over. However, not only does this increase the potential for getting sand into the container, substantial effort must be realized each time a drink is desired from the container.
To address this problem, devices have been proposed whereby a beverage container is held relatively securely while minimizing the risk of sand intrusion into the container, such that retrieval of the container to extract a sip therefrom, is relatively easy, as is replacement of the container back into its holder. Such devices, which come in a variety of architectures, have a typical cylindrical receptacle that removably holds the beverage container and an appropriate ground stake extending downwardly from the bottom of the receptacle, which ground stake is driven into the sandy ground of the beach and helps hold the device secure and upright. In use, the person drives the device into the ground, places the beverage container into the receptacle and withdraws the beverage container each time a drink is desired.
While effective, these devices fail to address other needs of modern beachgoers. Many beachgoers have other paraphernalia that they require to have ready at hand without the need to to fumble about a beach bag for such paraphernalia. Such items include smart phones and music players as well as snacks and juice boxes for little beachgoers that can get fussy at a moment's notice. While multiple beverage containers can be deployed to address this problem, many beachgoers find such multiple deployments to be awkward and inconvenient. Additionally, the cylindrical inside space of such holders is not the most ideal for the non-beverage container items that need to be held immediately at hand.
What is needed is a single unitary device that allows a beach goer to securely hold a beverage container as well as other paraphernalia that is needed immediately at hand by the beach goer, without the need to deploy multiple securement devices. Such a device must be relatively simple in operation so that ground securement of the device is easy and straightforward and so that insertion of various items, including the beverage container, into and extraction from the device is essentially effortless. Such a device must be of relatively simple design so that it is readily affordable by a large segment of potential consumers for this type of device.